1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the field of simulations and video games and more particularly relates to the field of searching executed in simulations and video games.
2. Description of the Related Art
In recent years, a plethora of online multiplayer games and simulations have appeared, ranging from simple combat games to complicated virtual reality worlds. A virtual world is a computer-based simulated environment intended for its users to inhabit and interact via avatars. This habitation usually is represented in the form of three-dimensional graphical representations of places, objects and humanoids (or other graphical or text-based avatars). Most, but not all, virtual worlds allow for multiple users. The world being computer-simulated typically appears similar to the real world, with real world rules such as gravity, topography, locomotion, real-time actions, and communication. Communication can be in the form of text, graphics and/or real-time voice communication using VoIP. These types of virtual worlds are common in massively multiplayer online games, particularly massively multiplayer online role-playing games. A metaverse refers to fully immersive 3D virtual worlds.
Due to the increasing size of virtual worlds, users are provided with various mechanisms for transporting their avatars and obtaining objects a user desires. For example, a user may “walk” or “run” to a desired location or a user may be able to specify a location in the virtual world and instantly teleport his avatar to that location. In another example, a user may look for a desired object in the virtual world by “walking” around and looking for the object or the user may execute a search for the object and use the search results to locate the desired object. The ability to search for items in a virtual world, however, does not come without its drawbacks.
Typically, when searching for an item, such as a car, in a virtual world, the user accesses a search window or other widget that allows the user to enter a name or keyword, such as the text string “car,” that represents the desired object. In response, the search window or other widget displays a list of search results that may correspond to the specified object. The user may then click on individual items on the list, which results in the immediate transport of the user's avatar to the location of the listed item. Once the user's avatar is transported to the location of the desired item, no other indication of the desired item is provided. Thus, in cases where the desired item is small, the user may not immediately notice where the desired item is located and must therefore navigate his avatar around the virtual world in search of the desired item. Further, in cases where a location is densely populated with objects and other avatars, it can be difficult for the user to find the desired item in light of all of the distractions and objects.
Therefore, there is a need for improvements over the prior art, and more particularly, there is a need for a more efficient way to automate the searching of items in a virtual world.